5 successful temporary captains for India

The Indian team has boasted of some great captains over the years who have garnered a lot of success across different formats of the game. Going back in time, the likes of Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar and Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi led India to some famous wins. In recent years, captains like Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni have taken the country's cricket to greater heights.

However, apart from these iconic leaders, there are also some stand-in captains who have done the job in the absence of the regular skippers. These players did not skipper the team too often but managed to win matches when they took over the reins for brief periods.

Here are 5 successful temporary captains in Indian cricket:

1. Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir led India to a clean sweep against New Zealand

One of India's best openers in recent years, Gautam Gambhir, has been doing a great job as captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders team in the Indian Premier League. However, the left-handed batsman was also the skipper of the Indian team for a few matches.

Gambhir has an incredible 6-0 win-loss record in ODIs and is easily among the most successful stand-in captains for Team India. His captaincy stint included a one-day series at home against New Zealand where he became the 21st ODI skipper in Indian cricket history.

It was a 5-match series in which India whitewashed the visitors and Gautam Gambhir was named 'Man of the Series' for his 329 runs with 2 centuries.